Baltimore health expert explains how perimenopause impacts women

A Baltimore health expert is weighing in as more and more women are beginning to talk about perimenopause. 

According to  Dr. Tangela Anderson Tull, it impacts many women. 

"Perimenopause is that transition right before menopause, and for some women, that's a year, for some women it's several years," she told WJZ. 

Dealing with perimenopause 

Often, women experience symptoms but don't realize what it is. 

Jennifer DeRose said she dealt with mild hot flashes for years until she knew it was time to talk to her doctor about them. 

"They weren't causing me a lot of trouble, and I didn't think about it very much. But then, when they started to intensify and wake me up at night, and I started feeling some joint pain and brain fog, I thought, 'This is it. This is really happening,'" DeRose said. 

Identifying perimenopause 

Dr. Anderson Tull said that for years, women did not understand what they were going through, and women were only looking for menopause. 

Unfortunately, perimenopause comes with a long list of symptoms. 

"Most common would be hot flashes, sleep disturbances, brain fog, difficulty concentrating, decreased sex drive, joint pain, even things like palpitations, itchy skin, drier skin. I almost describe it as if we are going back to puberty," said Dr. Anderson Tull.

But women do not have to suffer in silence. There are treatment options that can ease the symptoms and improve the quality of life. 

Treating perimenopause symptoms 

From diet and exercise to supplements and acupuncture, lifestyle changes can ease symptoms, but they are not the only option.

DeRose tried a couple of different options, but hormone replacement therapy was what worked best for her. The method has been controversial after a study showed that it led to a higher risk of breast cancer, heart attack and stroke. 

In November, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) removed the black box warning on the medication. 

"For years, hormone replacement therapy, especially estrogen, had a warning cautioning women about using it, so that created a lot of fear around women taking hormone replacement therapy," Dr. Anderson Tull said. 

With hormone treatment now shown to be safe, experts say the full range of treatments means no one has to navigate this alone.

DeRose is grateful that she received the help she needed.

"Talk to your doctor. If your doctor isn't sure about therapy, talk to another doctor," DeRose said. "It's not for everyone, but it's for a lot of people. And it really does solve a lot of problems and makes you able to function and enjoy life again."